Brazil starts exporting chicken to Egypt

by
5m Editor

9 September 2006, at 12:20pm

BRAZIL - Sao Paulo - Brazil has started exporting large volumes of chicken meat to the Egyptian market. According to newspaper Al Ahram, the main paper in the African-Arab country, 20,000 tonnes of frozen chicken, produced in Brazil, arrived in Egypt on Tuesday (05).

The arrival of the load was announced by the Minister of Agriculture of the Egypt, Amin Abaza. Imports of chicken were allowed by the local government in July to avoid lack of supply.

According to information supplied by the Brazilian Poultry Exporters Association (Abef), each tonne exported costs on average US$ 2,000. Therefore, a shipment of 20,000 tonnes costs, on average, US$ 40 million, representing around 19% of revenues due to chicken sales on the foreign market in the month of July.

"It is a significant shipment, and marks the country's presence," stated Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce president Antonio Sarkis Jr. "It is an opportunity to enter a market that was closed until very recently," he added.

Egypt has permitted for six months the import of frozen chicken, fresh and powdered eggs, and has also eliminated import tariffs on these products and on frozen cattle beef, fish and industrialized chicken. Apart from avoiding lack of supply, the objective behind the measure is to control rising food prices.